For me, the end of the year is always a time to turn inward - in the cold and the long hours of darkness to reflect on how we are doing, what we have achieved in the year, and our hopes for the year to come.

This year I am grateful to the CATA Team - for their hard work and dedication; to our community - for their daily struggle to work towards a better life for themselves and their families; and to our allies - for their continual support.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year!

In September of this year, CATA entered into a collaboration with the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University. This collaboration, "The NJ News Commons Spanish Translation Service," is a statewide collaboration to increase the quantity and quality of local and state news available to Spanish-speaking communities.

Since September, weekly, we at CATA, along with other partners around the state, receive a selection of relevant local and statewide news articles that have been translated into Spanish. We can then share these articles on our social media. In addition, our RadioCATA station manager summarizes these articles and weaves them into a 5–10-minute radio mini that is shared on our RadioCATA station for the next week.

At CATA, we are excited to be a participant in this pilot program, which we hope will grow and be expanded! In South Jersey, there are no local Spanish-language newspapers and relatively limited access to local and statewide news in Spanish, so this collaboration addresses a real gap in our community's access to critical information and news.

CATA is one of the founding members of the Agricultural Justice Project, believing that small sustainable farmers, farmworkers, and other stakeholders in our food system must work together to ensure that everyone working in agriculture can live with dignity and respect. After many years of being on the board as CATA's General Coordinator, I, Jessica Culley, was elected Chair of the Board in November 2022.

AJP is a fantastic group of dedicated advocates who grapple with the hard questions of how to build a different food system that works for everyone. We certainly have yet to figure out the answers, but we all believe that working together is essential to the solution. I'm glad to help provide leadership to this organization, and I look forward to helping us move forward over the next year.

If you'd like to learn more about the Agricultural Justice Project, its work on Food Justice Certification, and other work to transform the existing agricultural system, please visit their website.

"Jessica Culley's nomination to the AJP Board is met with my overwhelming enthusiasm. I learned first about CATA working with Richard Mandelbaum on AJP's program design. Then, when I became AJP's General Coordinator, I was later mentored by CATA's own Nelson Carrasquillo. 

I am eternally grateful for both; their contributions, perspectives, and advocacy have been essential to AJP's value as a project. Jessica's integrity and commitment to CATA's work reflected in AJP carry this torch on. The priorities of CATA's membership come through strongly in the leadership that Jessica has provided on the AJP board, and her diligence and insights are invaluable to the cross-sector struggle for justice in the food system. 

The long-term work of truly transforming the food system cannot be done without this kind of leadership and grounding in farmworker values, priorities, and expertise. Thank you for your continued support to the work," - Leah Cohen, AJP General Coordinator

Learn to grow food, feed your community, and become a food justice activist! If you are between 14 - 19 years old, you are invited to join our Youth Food Justice Crew at the Bridgeton, NJ, Community Garden! 

The program runs through the end of August and has a break in June.

Interns will be paid $14/hour and will be expected to work 8-10 hours/week.

The deadline to submit the application is 5 pm on Friday, January 13. Share this information with a friend you believe would be interested! 

Learn more about our Food Justice program here. If you have any questions, please send an email to eperez@cata-farmworkers.org

During mid-May, we talked with the Food Justice interns about key food sovereignty cases around the globe. The youth then chose which case study they wanted to learn more about, created a skit, and shared it with the group.

One team chose the Salt March from 1930 when India was under British control. Strict laws made it illegal for Indians to make or sell their own salt, and they were forced to purchase overpriced salt from the British. Many other laws discriminated against the Indians and treated them like second-class citizens despite Indians making up most of the population. Salt was a necessary ingredient for their food. When the British denied salt, they simultaneously denied life.

After choosing that case, the interns invited everyone to participate in a mock march. They remind us that while there was violence against Indians, Gandhi and his followers devoted themselves to the practice of nonviolence. In protest of salt restrictions, Gandhi declared that he would walk more than 200 miles to the ocean to make salt. Thousands joined Gandhi along the way and were arrested when they reached the sea. It wasn't until 17 years later that India gained independence, but many believed the Salt March sparked the fight for freedom.

Under the leadership of the youth, we gathered in the middle of the garden, channeled the spirit of the Salt March protesters, and proceeded to march in unison toward the front in respect of those who risked their lives against an oppressive authority. That day the youth did more than just recreating a scene on this small plot of land; that day, they were marching to reclaim their right to care for the land and cultivate healthy and culturally appropriate food to feed their community. A right that has been taken away from us.

When both youth and the community tend to the land and grow food, their work IS an act of resistance against the current food system that continues to exploit farmworkers, create food deserts, and increase food insecurity in their community. It's a step towards building an appreciation for the earth, acknowledging the importance of nourishment and self-care, and reconnecting with their culture and identity.

What do you think? How do we show resistance to our current food system? I'd love to hear your opinions on how we emulate Gandhi's Salt March - You can write me at eperez@cata-farmworkers.org